1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to tracking objects and more particularly to an expandable object tracking system utilizing a plurality of linkable devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
People frequently need assistance with keeping track of important objects such as pagers, cell phones, laptops, keys, remote controls for security and entertainment devices, etc. It is known in the art to, for example, equip the base station for a cordless phone and associated cordless phone with a feature that allows a button on the base station to activate an alarm in the phone to aid in locating the phone. Similar systems are available for entertainment system remote controls. These and other systems are based on the master/slave model in which a sophisticated master device such as a personal digital assistant (PDA) or laptop computer is capable of tracking a number of passively tagged objects. A drawback of these master/slave systems is that damage to or misplacement of the master device keeps the system from functioning.
There is a need in the art for an inexpensive, flexible, expandable, and easy to use object tracking system not based on the master/slave model.